Cyberworld: The Importance of Bringing Your Business Online

Recent studies show that up to 79% of consumers do most of their shopping and spending online. This is up a huge margin from 22% just 10 short years ago. With this clear and tectonic shift towards an online market, it has never been more important for business owners to ensure that they are projecting a strong internet presence. For many traditional businesses who have, until now, operated entirely in brick-and-mortar storefronts, this means delving into a new and complex world. A great example of this would be the review of play hippo, which outlines many of the challenges and benefits to taking your business online.

This Map of the Internet visualizes just how many devices are connected in the world. Wow.

When dealing with the online marketplace, there are many unique factors that must be accounted for by owners to facilitate a smooth transition for bringing their business online. Everything from ensuring the right pictures are available for the product (people don’t usually buy what they can’t see) to changing the way ads are made and displayed (many companies focus on getting their message out within 5 seconds for things like YouTube ads, because most users skip after that) and crafting the perfect interface for customers so they can quickly and easily find the right product for them.

As this is an undertaking that can be quite tedious, there were many companies who opted not to make the transition initially. However, this decision is only getting more and more difficult to stand by. As studies like the one mentioned previously in this article keep popping up, the pressure to have your business online is mounting quickly.

One of the biggest driving factors of this pressure is the millennial generation. For those of us who can still remember a time before the internet, let alone LTE & Wi-Fi, brick-and-mortar stores still have a value. I, personally, try to do as much shopping done in-person as possible. I like to hold and test what I am purchasing before shelling out the cash. But when you have grown up with the whole world at your fingertips through smartphones, laptops, tablets, smart TVs, etc. it would only seem logical to do as much as possible with the technology you are most comfortable with.

As this new generation starts up their own businesses, they will add to this by using their intimate knowledge of these technologies to create ever-better and more comprehensive online profiles, forcing all others to adapt or fall behind. Luckily for less tech-savvy owners, there is no shortage of those who are willing to offer their services to help get any business online. There are countless website builders, SEO tools and ad options that can not only bring a business into the 21st century but also allow them to efficiently communicate with their target audience.

While it can be annoying when you search for an item on your phone and suddenly see ads for it everywhere, it is extremely desirable for companies to pay for ads that are targeted directly to people who have a real chance of purchasing their product.

While these are some of the reasons it is a valuable endeavour to bring your business online, it is certainly not a complete list. The internet is simply the next piece in a long line of technologies that are pushing us (sometimes kicking and screaming) into the 21st century.